Once, Twice, Sold!
by VampSaxAngel
Summary: There's an "Auction a Date" event at Forks High! So, we know Edward will be involved, but what trouble can Bella get into? Fluff and fights. The best of both words! Two parts- the action; the date. Romance! Read and Review! Much Love, VSA XOXOX *some language*
1. Chapter 1

**OOC and slightly AU. Bella and Rose are friends in this version- just because. **

**Post-New Moon; Pre-Eclipse (if the Victoria stuff wasn't happening, I suppose). **

"Welcome Forks High students to the auction of the year!" a loud and all to familiar feminine voice called over the microphone, eliciting a loud and raucous reply from the audience. I stood amongst them as they howled and exclaimed empty sentences and unguessable words. It was hilarious and ignorant all at the same time.

I moved my eyes upward, matching my eyes with Alice's as she flashed a sparkling smile at me from the side of the microphone. Her hair was styled to perfection. Her makeup was clean and precise with a 1950's vibe of black winged liner and vivid rose red lips. Her dress was reminiscent of the age, polka dots and all. I had never imagined Alice would go to such extremes, especially _polka dots _of all things, but I decided not to question it. It was Alice, after all.

And this had been all her idea. Well, hers and Jessica Stanley's. Oh, the technicalities.

We were having an auction at Forks High. Not just any auction, oh no, we had to have an Auction a Date type of auction. Now, normally, I would never have any problem rolling out the dough for charity, but this was ridiculous. It wasn't even a fair auction, either. It was all male. The gym was littered and crowded, covered in the heat of body against body. Women were lined up like rats ready for an experiment, each one moving towards the cheese.

The cheese being the men, mind you.

I was dressed for such an occasion, a date occasion, all courtesy of Alice. My red heels were high, my black dress skin tight and short to mid thigh. My hair was wavy and teased, big and voluminous while my makeup was nice, clean, and utterly boring. Alice had said she was going to that "fresh face" look that Edward loved to much. I had replied that Edward loved my regular face; the one not caked with makeup.

She replied with: "Be that as it may, the more we enhance your features, the harder it will be to get him off of you."

I mean, does this girl no _nothing _of Edward's relentless restraint?

I rolled my eyes at the thought, meeting Alice's eyes again just in time for her to smile saucily, ready to welcome the first piece- ahem, person- of the auction.

"The first man of the night is Robert Carter!"

I knew Robert from a distance. He was the star quarterback and built like a brick wall. He had cropped brown hair and high cheekbones. The girls were inviting of him; however, I was far less admirable in my affections for him.

"Twenty dollars!" Emily Stanson, a flamboyant Sophomore yelled out the first bid, her short blonde hair bouncing as she hopped on the balls of her feet with her hand springing in the air.

"Twenty dollars, first bid. Anyone else?" Alice asked over the mike, taking in the crowd. Robert stood to the side, smiling like the arrogant jerk he is. We had had run-ins with one another quite a few times, him pushing my books away when I fell. That all ended once Emmett got a hold of him, though.

"Fifty dollars!" shouted a confident voice. I smirked, not even looking back. Glancing over the guy's form, I knew that he would be one to buy. Fifty dollars more than likely was not going to cut it.

"Seventy!" See?

And this went on and on, guy to guy.

Robert went with a not-so-sparing three hundred and seventy five dollars- for which I found so ridiculous that I actually laughed aloud- Johnathan Miller, sixty; James Fuller, two hundred and thirty; Erik Cripty, twenty-five; Michael Thomas, one hundred; Erik Thomas, his brother, one hundred and fifteen; Sammy Jeffries, forty-five; Carter Heavens, two hundred...as it continued.

Just take a guess on which were athletes.

I scowled as an extremely high bid of four hundred dollars went up for the star of the basketball team, Gail Thomas. I was disgusted by my own species, my own gender. We gave up dollar signs for the perfect piece, but we never gave it for the beauty in something to work on. Not to say that the men that did not play sports needed any work- none of them did- but they were still categorized differently. They were categorized as _less _than the sportsman, and I found it degrading. Not only to the men but to us women, as well.

Granted, I had gotten, possibly, one of the biggest and most exquisite pieces in this tiny town, it did not lessen my drive to make others feel accepted, despite what they did, who they are, and what they like. That was nowhere near my style. But it fit every other female's description in this school. They were biased to looks and the resemblance to the smallest bit of fame to get in this town. They did not _know _anyone.

I sighed. They all wondered, not so discreetly, about how mine and Edward's relationship had lasted so long, but they never realized that it was simply the knowledge of one another that made us work so well together. I knew everything about him, and he knew everything about me. We _talked, _and no one else seemed to care to do such a thing in this damn place.

"And now, the final three men in the auction." I refocused, almost blindly, as Alice spoke of the final entries. I knew exactly who they were. I repeat, take a guess. I had noticed that, besides Gail's unusually high dollar sign, that the bids had gone down rapidly as the night went on, and it definitely was not for the lack of specific men. It was the wait for _the _men that pulled the money down.

"First up, Emmett Cullen!"

Emmett stepped into the light covering the stage, smiling broadly as he overlooked the crowd. Instead of a smug and arrogant smile like Robert, Emmett's was lovable and inviting, engaging. His smile turned into a smirk as I watched a subtle glint enter his eyes. He raised his arms, bending them so his fist were spread over his shoulders. He flexed his expansive muscles.

The girls went _wild. _

"Fifty dollars!"

"One hundred!"

"One-fifty!"

"Two hundred!"

It continued going, up...up...up. It finally ended when Rosalie materialized beside me, gripping my arm and pulling me through the crowd to the front rapidly. With her skillful maneuvering of both she and myself, neither of us so much as brushed the frantic girls as we sped through them. My brow furrowed as I followed unwillingly. The front few rows were the worst of all, and I was content to remain as far away from them as possible. Despite my qualms, though, I soon found myself standing right in the front row.

Emmett's eyes met Rosalie's, and I could almost see the spark between them igniting. It was almost too intimate to watch, but I did not really have anyone better to look. Rosalie gripped my hand.

"Three thousand dollars!" she released loudly. Major noises quieted down to dull whispers and almost silent roars. Rose had out bid them all, staking her claim loud and clear.

Emmett dropped his arms, smiling with dimples.

"Sold!" Alice exclaimed, giggling as Emmett hopped off the stage, going straight to Rosalie. They shared a kiss almost too passionate for the venue as Rose dropped my hand to take both of Emmett's. They separated, looking into each others eyes a moment before stepping close together, their arms moving to wrap around one another as they turned to face the stage.

"Next up, Jasper Whitlock!"

I chuckled as Jasper came out, dressed like any girl's dream. He was decked out like a seductive cowboy, boots, belt buckle, and all. I had to admit, he looked dashing, but I had something better. Well, to me, anyway. Admittedly, it was arguable, but not entirely so. Not on my account, at least. Again, the bids flew out like they were pulled by gravity. Ah, gravity, thou art a heartless bitch. And from the look on Alice's face, she was soon to act like one. I smirked, shaking my head. She did not seem to think this one through. Finally, Rosalie decided to end her torture...and Jasper's.

"Thirty-five hundred! On the host!" she called, pointing a manicured finger at her fifties styled pixie of a sister. Alice smiled sweetly, blowing a kiss to Rose who waved it off as Jasper disappeared behind the stage curtain, his head swiveling as he shook it with an almost unseen roll of his eyes.

Now, came the hard part.

"Edward Cullen!"

He came out, looking even more sexy than usual, if you can imagine such a thing. He was decked out in all dark fabrics. Dark jeans, a black shirt, black docs, and, for the love of all that's a Holy, a _leather jacket. _I was pretty sure that the rest of the population was drooling along with me. His hair was wild as ever, sticking up in multiple directions. He looked right at me and winked, smiling that crooked shift of his kissable lips that he reserved just for me. I was dazed a second before returning my own goofy smile.

"Five hundred dollars!" Jessica called out. There went my smile. I looked to my right, seeing Jessica's hand raised over her head as she took a slight step out of the front line, towards the stage. I blinked, unseeing almost, as she turned her head to me, raising an eyebrow in a powerfully suggested challenge.

"Five hundred and seventy-five!" another, far more shrill, voice called out. I kept my head to the side as Lauren stepped up slightly, giving me an even more daring smirk.

What was once a stupid idea- the auction, the bidding- was going to turn into a war. I had assumed this would happen. Edward was delectable, I was very aware of this, but I never imagined that I would actually have to dish out this much. I had expanded my limits to spending only two thousand dollars. I had more as a precaution, but if these girls really wanted him, as I was sure they did, they were sure to have quite a dollar sign of money saved up. Neither of them had won all night. Their money was not even tapped into, no matter the amount.

I was _challenged_ and _possessive_. And damn it all if I wasn't even the slightest bit _jealous. _

I glanced up at Edward as the number climbed, no words leaving my lips. He was watching me cautiously, as was Alice, her eyes flickering between me and the bidders. Edward, however, only had eyes for me, but I could see that, with every bid, he was tensing even more. So was I. He did not want me wasting money- he was stuck with me, after all- but he also did not want to have to go on a date with either of those girls.

"One thousand, five hundred!" Jessica revealed.

"Two thousand!" Lauren countered, smiling smugly as Jess backed down slightly, calculating.

My eyes widened. _No, no, no! _My breathing halted for a second, and I saw Edward's head swivel in my direction from where he had looked at Alice briefly. My eyes were wide, frantic as I glanced from Lauren to Alice to Edward. One was smug, two were worried.

"Go on, Bella!" Rosalie clamored to me quietly, pushing her shoulder against mine slightly.

"Make your claim on my brother, you flighty vixen!" Emmett growled, patting his head against my back.

I stumbled forward, wide-eyed. Edward's eyes locked with mine as Alice counted down on the number.

"Two thousand. Going once!"

No, this isn't right. My line was two thousand dollars. Edward didn't want me to spend money. We had discussed it.

"Going twice!"

Alice glanced at me, nodding her head slightly. Then again, it my money, my decision.

"So-!"

"Five thousand dollars and fifty cents!" Damn it all.

Silence.

The gym closed down as Lauren released a gasp, turning her head to stare at me in shock. Emmett and Rosalie did the same. My eyes probably held the same emotions, my jaw bobbing with parted lips. I had spoken, yelled actually, without thinking. I was running on instinct, and that was all my money. If Lauren went any higher, I was done for. Edward looked down me, shocked as I was, but there was some kind of ecstatic glint in his eyes. Knowing as well as I did, I was sure that he was already thinking of ways to pay me back, one version being an expensive date, no doubt. Not that I needed it, but I was actually going to let him do what he wanted on our date. This much money, worth it as he was, was truly all I had saved. One night of free spoiling probably would not be that bad.

"There's no way you have that much money, Swan! Unless it's from Edward, of course," Lauren broke in, looking me over with disdain.

I snorted before I could stop myself, striking back, "It's definitely my money. But, even if it was Edward's, you best believe that it would be for his benefit and not mine." As in, he would never want a date with you, of all people.

She gasped when she caught onto the implication of my words, and I saw Edward smirk from the corner of my eye.

"So, five thousand dollars?" Alice questioned, releasing some of the tension. 

"And fifty cents," I added in confirmation, nodding.

The pixie smiled, stepping up to the mike. "And the final man goes to Bella Swan for five thousand dollars and-" she winked "-fifty cents! Thank you all for coming tonight! Have a great night, and thank you all so much for your contributions to the charity!"

I turned, walking through the bustling crowd. Most of the bidders had already left so the line for the check-out table was small, only four or five girls. I stepped up behind the last girl, reaching into my purse to pull out my wallet. I gripped it in my hand as the line moved forward. One, two, three, four. I stepped up to the table as Mrs. Cope looked up.

"Ah, Miss Swan," she greeted, "that was quite a show, dear." She logged in my information: name, amount, date.

I flashed a small smile, forking the money over against my better judgment. I had never given anyone so much money. I was so happy this was going to charity. She took it quickly, dropping it and the information card into a white envelope. She picked up a strong piece of paper with ribbon around the edges. She slid it across the table to me.

"Please, sign this so we can display it in front of the office. It's for appearance sake and such. Good gratification, too." She winked, handing me a pen.

I quickly shoved my wallet in my purse, bending down as I gripped the pen in a loose grip. The soft tip rolled over the paper flawlessly, the ink dripping effortlessly. I had to admit, it made my messy scrawl look pretty. For once. I capped the pen and slid both objects to her. She gave me a smile, which I returned before turning away from her.

Small groups of students still crowded the gym, standing in sporadic areas all over the area. I traced over the groups, not seeing the Cullens anywhere. Shrugging, I began walking towards the door. I reached it, placing my hands on the bar, leaning against it heavily to make it move. It pushed open, and I slipped out into the cold air only Forks could offer in late April. I gripped my jacket, swinging it around as I slipped my arms in the sleeves, looking across the parking lot to Edward's Volvo. Still, the Cullens were nowhere to be seen. My brow furrowed as I reached up to release my hair from its jacket confinement.

I pulled my arms across my abdomen as I stepped onto the glistening dark pavement as I made my way to the car. I reached it, leaning against the trunk as I looked up at the night sky. It was beautiful, stunning even, with twinkling stars in their multitude. They spread out above me, a shooting star passing to the right. I smiled, watching it drift off into nothing. Gorgeous.

"Orion," I whispered as I traced the constellation. "Achilles, Cassiopeia."

I looked over the big dipper and the little dipper, glancing over to the doors of the gym. No sign of my boyfriend or his family at all. I exhaled, dropping my head and kicking a rock across the parking lot. Where could they be?

I was brought from my thoughts as a sting rushed through my jaw and up my cheek. My head snapped to the side, and my slight form slid over the silver exterior of the car before I plummeted to the pavement. I rolled onto my back, up on my bent arms, as I looked up to find none other than Lauren Mallory glaring down on me, positively seething. She strode towards me.

"You bitch!" she growled, kicking my hard in the stomach. I groaned. "One night! You couldn't let him go for one night!" Her foot connected with my side again. "You're no good for him anyway."

"Couldn't agree more," I groaned out, shuffling backwards on my hands. I managed to get a good distance away. I kicked against the concrete with my right foot, propelling my feet over my head as I rolled backwards. I landed on my feet, pulling up to stand, not even stumbling. I know, surprised me too. I smiled wickedly as I saw the shock flash over Lauren's face before it retreated into her annoying glare.

"At least you know your place," she murmured, shifting towards me as I brought my fists up before my face. "It's a shame you don't stick with it."

I smirked, shaking my head slightly, my jaw stinging with the movement. "Seriously? He picked me, you bottle-blonde, not the other way around. I know my place just fine. My ego, however, nah, nowhere near as arrogant or ignorant as yours."

She gasped, her eyes widening comically. I laughed outright at her expression. She growled pathetically, coming forward. Her fist flew forward towards my face, but I redirected it, using my free hand to place a solid punch against her ribs. She hunched over, gasping again. She stood, moving to punch repeatedly, relentlessly. I blocked well, for the most part, but she got one good one through. Her fists connected with my face, again and again. I felt liquid, and I knew that I was bleeding. From my nose or my lip, I didn't know. Maybe both. I stumbled back, lowering my head behind my arms so she hit them instead as I caught my breath. Still, she never relented.

Finally, I snarled.

I cried out, rocking back on my heel before pushing forward. She screamed along with me as I bent into her form, wrapping my arms around her waist. I pushed us into Edward's car with a powerful force. She cried out as I released her, raising my foot to strike her abdomen. I did so, and she slumped completely, falling to the ground on her ass as she raised her arms before her face. I exhaled, breathing heavily as I stepped away, looking down on her. She glanced at me through her arms, looking up at me in what I assumed was confusion, but I couldn't really tell.

I shook my head, spitting in her direction. "I may be spilling blood," and I was, "but I won. You didn't, got me?" She nodded soundlessly. "Good," I remarked as Alice and Rosalie came running up to me. "Now, go!"

She bobbed her head, rolling to her feet and stumbling away. I whirled around to my sisters. "Where the hell have you two been!?" I demanded, looking over them with wide eyes. I knew I looked a mess, covered in blood as I was, but I did not seem to care. It hurt, yes, but I wasn't going to let it dominate me.

They both looked at me apologetically. "We're so sorry, Bella," Alice stated. "A girl fell and cut her hands. I didn't see it before it happened, and Emmett and Edward had to get Jasper away. That's when I saw what was happening. It was such a split decision on Lauren's part, it was too late for us to really do anything, and I was still calming Jasper down. Edward didn't even notice."

I sighed, rolling my eyes while wiping some blood that dripped down my chip. "Fine. I get it. Where's Edward?"

"He and Emmett are watching over Jasper while he hunts. They're close to home, so they'll be back in an hour," Rosalie replied, the golden strands of her hair shining as she flipped it over a shoulder.

"Okay, good. Now, if you don't mind, could you please get me to Carlisle? My face really hurts."

Alice gasped, neither of them having been bothered at all by the blood or my appearance. "Oh, of course! No more talking! Let's go."

She pulled me to Edward's car, and I slipped into the backseat as the others sat in the front. The car purred as Alice revved the engine, leaving the school behind in under a minute. We flew down the road, the trees flying past in blurs of dark emerald. As we drove, I began to feel my skin pulsate and burn from the sensations of pain. I closed my eyes, breathing deeply. I was going to be in so much pain tomorrow. I would probably have some bruises also. I melted into the seat, relaxing as much as possible with the quiet engine purr lulling me into a calm state.

"Good job, Bella," Rose muttered quietly from the front seat, just barely grazing into my tranquil state.

"For what?" I wondered. "Pushing her teeth in?"

Rosalie laughed breathlessly, angelically. "Yeah. It's kinda nice to see someone handle Lauren. She needed it. You showed her who's really in the right place."

I smiled. "Thanks, Rosalie."

"No problem, sis."

I pushed away into oblivion, sinking...sinking...sinking into blissful euphoric tranquility. I was in a dream state. Even as the car came to a stop, and I was being lifted out of the vehicle, I was stable and calm. My face was still dripping with blood; my jaw, cheeks, eyes, everything, stinging brazenly. Yet, it was so peaceful.

_You showed her who's really in the right place. _

If I knew it wouldn't hurt, I probably would've smiled. I had shown her I was meant to be here, with this ridiculously perfect family. I would never be perfect, but neither were they. But, that's what _made _them perfect. It was their imperfections that I loved the most. Cracking a small smile, I opened my eyes to see Carlisle's face above me, the icy temperature of his arms surrounding me as he cradled me to his chest.

"You know," I started in a whisper, and he looked down on me with his bright golden eyes, "I've never thought about the irony of this."

"Of what?" he wondered quietly as he stepped into his office, laying my petite form on the couch against the far wall. He moved away slowly, grabbing his bag from behind his desk and returning in the next second.

"The fact that I'm dating a vampire, and you're his father and a doctor," I muttered as he pulled out an antiseptic rag from his bag, and then I added, "I'm also a ridiculous klutz too."

Carlisle smiled in amusement at my words, a short chuckle escaping. He began brushing the rag over my face slowly, cleaning away the dirt and germs and blood. My skin tingled at the sensation, the pain flaring slightly, but I was in control. Then, he passed it over the cut in my lip, and it burned. The fire scorched through the wound, shooting straight through the bottom and top lip and slightly out from the edge on both. The cut was long and deep, I could tell. I winced, and Carlisle quickly moved the rag away, cleaning the blood away from beneath my nose.

I exhaled. "It's okay."

He nodded, looking into my eyes. "I know. It's clean so you got through the worst of it." He pulled the rag from my nose, tossing it over his shoulder with perfect aim. It plopped into the small garbage can beside his desk. I raised my eyebrows. I couldn't even find it myself to be surprised. Even so, my lips curled in a small smile, mindful of the cut. "You are gonna have some pretty rough bruises though."

I breathed a short laugh, slowly sitting up with Carlisle's help. I flung my legs to the side, my feet sinking to the floor. Carlisle remained knelt down in front of me, his eyes calm and peaceful- accepting. "I would be more worried if I didn't have bruises, truthfully." I rubbed a gentle hand across my jaw; the place of the first punch. The rest of my face had been thoroughly abused with flying fists. I was going to be black and blue all over, maybe even have a shiner. I almost groaned. "Lauren can throw quite a punch when she gets close enough."

Carlisle shook his head humorlessly, rolling his eyes slightly. He stood, holding a hand out to me. I grabbed it, lifting. As soon as I stood, I moved forward, wrapping my arms around his waist. He returned the hug, pressing a soft kiss to my hair.

"Try not to get into too many fights Bella," he muttered, pulling away. "I don't think Edward can take it."

I snorted delicately. "Don't worry. But, if I do, he knows I can throw one hell of a right hook." I winked, moving towards the door. He chuckled, waving to me as I stepped out of the room.

I closed the door behind me, turning to make my way to Edward's room. I went up the next stairway, slipping through the first door on the right on the third floor. I stepped into Edward's pristine bedroom, the golden bed standing out against the wooden frame it was nestled in. Atop the bed was my bag. Alice must have brought it in. I unzipped it, grabbing my toiletries and pajamas. I walked to the bathroom, turning on the water, stripping, and stepping into the steaming water without looking at my reflection in the mirror. I washed quickly, dressing in boy shorts and a tank top when I finished. As I moved, getting dressed, I finally felt the searing pain in my side from where I had been kicked a few times. Lifting the royal blue top, I looked down at my side. I already had a few bruises along my side, fresh and sure to get even darker. I sighed, flicking the light off before moving back into the bedroom.

I dropped my bag and the clothes on the floor. I turned to the bed, moving to Edward's side to grab the stereo remote off the bedside table. On it was a small lamp, which I turned on, and a few picture frames. Each a held a picture of me and Edward. One from prom and one from a day we spent in the meadow. He had downloaded it to his computer from his phone, getting it printed and framed immediately after. I looked down on our smiling faces with a twinkle in my eye as I thought of how happy we were and still are.

I looked away after a second, raising the remote to the stereo, prepared with my finger over the volume button in case Edward had been having a rage out last time he had it on. Luckily, the volume change was unneeded. Music flowed out easily, calm and quiet. Sweet piano music flowed out, but I knew that it was not Edward's recording of himself. Though emotion was there, the true depth of Edward's playing could not be detected. Glancing down at the remote, I pressed a button, and the music stopped as the CD carriage whizzed and turned until it stopped on the disk in the first hold. No matter what, a CD with my lullaby was always in the first slot. Edward made sure of that for such occasions as this. I put the remote down as my song filled the area like silk, velvety smooth. I sank into it as I turned the overhead light off, the lamplight forcing a soft glow throughout the room.

I went to the window that stretched from floor to ceiling, sinking down before it and leaning back against the beam to the edge of it. I bent my legs, keeping them stretched before me as I relaxed completely so the pain in my side dimmed slightly. Outside, it was dark. I could not make out the true appearance of the forest, and I was perfectly content to stare up into the star filled sky as the moon shone brightly. I saw outlines of the trees, nothing more. I leaned my head back against the beam, listening to my lullaby as it ran around on replay.

I was pulled from my thoughts as the door opened behind me. I turned my head slightly, glancing over as Edward shut the door behind him. He turned, his eyes locking with mine, the beautiful love he has for me shining through his irises. My lips curled, and I immediately grimaced as the cut pulled.

"Oh, Bella," he sighed, coming towards me and sinking down on his knees beside me. He looked me over, raising a hand to my cheek. The cold of his skin seeped into mine, and I swear I purred. He cradled my face, stroking his thumbs over the apples of my cheeks.

I sighed gently, my eyes still locked with his. "You're numbing the pain," I whispered.

"Good," he breathed quietly, moving a hand to run his fingers over my lips. I pressed a gentle kiss to each finger as it past, knowing that the feeling of cut must have been the slightest bit unpleasant against his oversensitive skin; though, he never gave no inclination to such a thing. If anything, his eyes darkened as I watched him closely with every brush of my lips. When I got each finger, he moved his hands away, simply staring at me in that unnerving way that he often did.

The seconds moved on, and I finally found my voice to ask, "What is it?"

Edward smiled sweetly, shaking his head slightly. "It's nothing. It's just..." I raised an eyebrow as his voice trailed, watching, entranced, as his eyes sparkled with stars as they reflected into his eyes, highlighting the golden hue. "You're so brave and amazing and beautiful and intelligent and giving. I mean, my God, Bella, you gave five thousand dollars for a date with me. You gave that to charity, Sweetheart, not to me, not for me." He gave a short laugh. "And then you beat up Lauren for being the self-righteous bitch she is." He looked down my body slyly, raking in my form. My cheeks heated. "It's kinda...sexy."

I resisted the urge to snort as I looked down _his_ body, taking in the same attire as I did earlier. If I was sexy, then he was a god. "You know, you're not so bad looking yourself," I joked before quickly shifting forward and to the side, moving to my knees as I practically fell against his chest. He laughed with me as I melted into him, my side burning a little as I rammed into his rock hard chest. His arms weaved around me in a loving embrace, and I looked up into his eyes to see that emotion reflected back to me, my eyes glowing through his in the same way. "Just so you know, I don't _always _need you to save me, surprisingly enough."

He rolled his eyes, moving us so he had his legs stretched forward with me straddling his waist. My hips rolled into his for a second, and his eyes darkened just a fraction. I would not have even noticed it were I not so intent on focusing on his face.

"That may be true," he said, "but I'm still always going to save you."

I nodded my head, my drying hair bouncing. "Of course. I wouldn't expect anything less." I smiled, and he returned it as I sunk even deeper in his chest. I leaned forward slightly, our foreheads touching. He exhaled, and I inhaled and vice versa. I was intoxicated in seconds, completely enraptured by his scent.

Soon, he removed his hand from my waist, lifting it across my back so it weaved into the strands of hair at the nape of my neck. He lightly gripped my hair, his lips molding with mine. I gasped into the kiss, feeling that sweet euphoria that always came with the feel of his lips against mine. Fireworks exploded behind my eyelids when he locked across my lip, no doubt tasting the remnants of blood there. He must have because he growled lowly in his chest after, the hand still on my waist gripping the fabric of my tank top so tightly that I thought he would rip it.

I parted my lips, letting his tongue graze mine. I let a moan slip out, earning a sexy and very manly groan from him in return. Taking it in, I raised my hands to his hair, quickly twining his wild locks between and around my fingers so I could hold us together. Of course, my oxygen level had better ideas. Slowly, we parted, our lips still brushing as we calmed our breathing. He relaxed before I did, but not too long before. I stared into his eyes, breathing his scent in deeply.

"I love you," I whispered, my lips running along his.

He smiled, kissing me softly one more time. "As I love you."

I was going to remain quiet, looking into his eyes for a long time, but that was interrupted as a thought occurred to me. "Oh, and Edward?"

"Hmm?" he hummed in his throat, the sound spiraling me down into the depths of passion for the moment. How can one man be _this _seductive?

I parted my lips to answer, giggling quietly before saying, "I also paid an extra fifty cents. And you still owe me a date." I broke into a fit of giggles as Edward captured my lips again, my laughter still straining in my chest as he did the same before cutting me off with a passionate kiss.

And that's how we stayed. Me, saving myself for once, and him, holding me after I actually saved myself without him.

Either way, I have a date coming up, and that five thousand dollars was definitely worth it.

Every single penny.

Well...quarters.

Can't forget that fifty cents.

**Please, review to your hearts content! Let me know what you think! Thanks! **

**~Much Love, Zoe (VSA) XOXO~**

**Oh, and there will be a part two!**


	2. DestinationDecimation! Almost Here!

**Hello, everyone! **

**I _know _you all would much rather have a chapter, but there have been a few questions about how my novel is coming and such. I have been working on it intensively in the recent weeks, and we are getting closer and closer to its release! I am ridiculously excited, and I hope that all of you are getting excited with me! **

**Now, for all of you that follow my official novel page on Facebook (search "Decimation by Zoe Belew" to find it, or, you know, just take the link on my profile page), you are now aware that I will be doing the official cover reveal and the synopsis very soon on there quite a few days before I do it on here. _So, _if you want in on that, you better go drop a like and a comment! **

**Onward to the gritty levels of the writer's atmosphere, my novel is going to be available in paperback and kindle download with a later release of hardback! Now, this is where the trade off happens. All of you on here are the first to know about the formats in which my book will be released, but my Facebook fans get all of the reveals first. Sometimes, they never get posted here. Again, if you want in on that, go like my page. **

**I just wanted to say that I am very thankful for all the support, and I will be working on my fanfic stories again very soon. Once my book is finished, I will take a break from my trilogy to work on the stories here. So get excited for the book release, and for the updated chapters on here! **

**I hope you all are happy and healthy!**

**Thank you for all your support! We are getting closer and closer to _Decimation, _and it is going to be amazing when it finally gets here!**

**See you all soon!**

**~Much Love**

**Zoe**


	3. RELEASE DATE REVEAL MORE

MY BOOK COMES OUT ON **JUNE 2**!

I have been freaking out for weeks now! I got the first official copy, and I did reveal that on my YouTube channel. (Search Zoe Belew- I should be the first official channel link that pops up- or you can take the link on my profile).

Also, be sure to check out my blog! I have interviews and things of that nature coming up, so be sure to keep up with all of that!

Who's excited? I AM!

Please, do me the beautiful favor of following, liking, commenting, and subscribing to all my social media. All links are on my profile!

Hope you are all ready to get my book! It looks great, if I do say so myself!

Have a wonderful and blessed day!

~Much Love,

Zoe


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